WATCH: Pritzker: Will go to court ‘immediately’ if Trump deploys National Guard | Illinois
(The Center Square) – Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker says he will go to court if President Donald Trump sends the National Guard to Chicago. The governor visited a public school in Berwyn Thursday and was asked what he would do if the president deployed the Guard to help prevent crime. “We’re going to immediately go […]
WATCH: Pritzker focuses on violence intervention; VP won’t confirm deployments | Illinois
(The Center Square) – Vice President J.D. Vance is not confirming reports shared by Gov. J.B. Pritzker that federal deployments may arrive in Illinois this week. Pritzker spoke in Chicago Wednesday and said he had no official confirmation about National Guard or Immigrations and Customs Enforcement deployments. “What we’re hearing is that they’ll be assembled, […]
WATCH: Trump says ‘we’re going in’ as Pritzker pushes for money instead of troops | Illinois
(The Center Square) – President Donald Trump has promised to send federal crime-fighting help to Chicago, but Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker says he wants federal dollars instead. The president answered questions from reporters Tuesday and cited Chicago crime numbers, which included more than 50 people getting shot over the Labor Day weekend. Trump promised to […]
Alternative tax-hike ideas emerge to fund Illinois public transit | Illinois
(The Center Square) – Illinois lawmakers are proposing more options to address a $770 million fiscal cliff for public transit. After a funding package that included a $1.50 retail delivery tax and real-estate transfer taxes failed to clear the Illinois House during the 2025 spring legislative session, state Rep. Kam Buckner, D-Chicago, suggested a special-event […]
Legislator warns bad Illinois policy continues to hurt business investment | Illinois
(The Center Square) – With businesses in Illinois now suffering on multiple levels, state Rep. Brad Halbrook argues it’s clear the state has become its own worst enemy when it comes to charting a clearer pathway. U.S. Census Bureau statistics show only 5.6% of business applications across the state ultimately turned into establishments open for […]
Op-Ed: Chicago-area transit needs an intervention, not another fix | Opinion
If Illinois were a family, it would have 1,313 siblings – its cities, towns and villages. One of them is a trainwreck, repeatedly in crisis, addicted and constantly asking the rest of the family for help. Not hard to guess: the black sheep is Chicago. The city’s schools think they are entitled to $1.6 billion […]
Illinois quick hits: Mine manager pleads guilty; Johnson issues food executive order | Illinois
Mine manager pleads guilty A former Franklin County mine manager has pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration in relation to an underground fire in August 2021. Prosecutors say Timothy Brandon Parsons, 38, of Louisa, Kentucky, and co-conspirators agreed not to evacuate miners over the course of three shifts […]
WATCH: Pritzker claims Trump plans election interference with troop deployment | Illinois
(The Center Square) – Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker says President Donald Trump only wants troops on the ground to interfere in next year’s elections, not address public safety as the president insists. Trump border czar Tom Homan on Thursday confirmed some kind of staging area is planned at Naval Station Great Lakes, but didn’t disclose […]
Illinois quick hits: Gun ban challengers petition SCOTUS; man sentenced for COVID fraud | Illinois
Gun ban challengers petition SCOTUS The Second Amendment Foundation is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to take a challenge to Cook County’s ban on semi-automatic firearms. Originally filed in 2021, the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals sided with the county, upholding the ban in June of this year. In 2023, the state enacted a […]
Illinois quick hits: Record hotel tax revenues reported; grocer sentenced for SNAP, WIC fraud | Illinois
Record hotel tax revenues reported Illinois tourism numbers for 2024 saw an all-time high for hotel tax revenue. The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity’s Office of Tourism announced the state welcomed 113 million domestic and international visitors who spent more than $48 billion. Total hotel tax revenue came in at $367 million, a […]